Qivitoq

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Movie
German title Qivitoq
Original title Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren
Country of production Denmark
original language Danish ; Greenlandic
Publishing year 1956
length 102 minutes
Rod
Director Erik Balling
script Leak fisherman
production Nordisk Films Kompagni
music Svend Erik Tarp
camera Poul Pedersen
cut Carsten Dahl
occupation

Qivitoq (actually according to the old spelling K'ivítoĸ , today Qivittoq [ qivitːɔq ] who goes to the mountains ) is a Danish color film from 1956, the fifth film by director Erik Balling . It was nominated for an Oscar for best foreign language film in 1957 and won a special award at the Cannes International Film Festival . The melodrama is set in Greenland , which, with natural shots and depictions of the local everyday life, forms the framework for four love stories. The film also addresses the modernization of Greenland life and the problems associated with it.

action

Eva Nygaard from Copenhagen visits the small (fictional) town of Frederiksminde on Greenland, north of the Arctic Circle, to surprise her fiancé, the doctor Erik Halsøe. When she arrives at the hospital, she meets the nurse Kirsten Prage before her fiancé. Eva puts this into the picture. Erik had entered into a liaison with her and Eva was unwelcome here.

The colonial administrator Frederikmindes Marius Mariboe and his wife offer Eva their help, especially since Eva cannot leave before a week at the earliest. Eva finds the fact unbearable that everyone on site knows what happened to her. So it happens that Eva travels on to the Sermelik branch in order to return to Denmark from there. The head of the branch, Jens Lauritzen, is anything but enthusiastic.

Meanwhile, the local Pavia is waiting for his new boat from Denmark. He was previously a seal hunter in Sermelik, but is now supposed to become a fisherman at Jens Lauritzen's request, as the seals are becoming fewer. Jens hopes that the other villagers will follow Pavia because there is no question that the matter will be a success. He assures Pavia of his help.

Eva and Jens don't get along. Eva gets lost while exploring the Sermelik area and Pavia comes to her aid. The friendly understanding between the two annoys Well, Pavia's girlfriend. After this adventure, Jens, who was looking for Eva, has had enough and hopes to find a return trip for her there, and wants to take Eva to Uummannaq , about eight hours away, in his own boat .

However, due to the combination of thick fog and an ice field, the boat will have to return to Sermelik. During the last part of the return trip, the two start talking and Eva finds out, among other things, that Jens' wife couldn't stand it in Greenland and therefore left him.

On the occasion of the first seal caught by Nuka, Pavia's brother, Cæcilie, the mother of the two, invites the place to a kaffemik , a meal together. While drinking coffee, Cæcilie reports on the qivitoq . Jens explains to Eva that this is a kind of revenant and that this legend has its origins in the fact that some Greenlanders, because of great worry or a loss of face, decide to live alone outside in the wild and ultimately die.

After the kaffemik there is a village dance and Eva dances with Pavia. Well sees that, who then doesn't want to dance with Pavia, but invites someone else to dance with her, whereupon the bystanders laugh. Pavia goes home. While the rest are dancing, a child falls down and a pack of sled dogs pounce on them. The wounds are so severe that they have to be sutured. Eva is now in contact with her ex-fiancé via radio. Together with Jens and the boy, Eva, who is supposed to go to their ship, and Pavia, who is supposed to pick up his boat, go to Frederiksminde.

There Erik asked Eva for forgiveness and to wait for him because he wanted to return to Denmark soon. Jens joins the conversation and Eva goes with Jens. You are driving without Pavia, Jens wants to show Eva a little Greenland before leaving. While packing her things, Eva talks to Naja and convinces her that there is no love affair between her and Pavia.

Jens forgets his agreements with Pavia and celebrates her farewell with Eva in festive sermelik. Meanwhile, Pavia tries to catch fish on her own. When Pavia comes home without a catch, the male population laughs at him. Even though Eva can imagine staying with Jens, she blames herself for Pavia's failure and prefers to go back to Denmark so as not to cause further trouble. In the bright night, Pavia leaves the community and, with his kayak and the laughter of others in his ears, goes into the ice sheet , where the qivitoq is supposed to live and where all outsiders go.

Jens and Nuka are looking for him, but Pavia only ends his escape after Jens falls into a crack in the ice. Back in Sermelik, Pavia is warmly welcomed by the community and especially by Naja and Jens notices that Eva has not left after all.

production

The port of Ilulissat in 2004 - this is where the schooner that brought Eva Nygaard to Greenland docked in the film

The film was made on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Nordisk Film . She had wanted to make a Greenland film since the mid-1940s. In the summer of 1955, the director Erik Balling and the screenwriter Leck Fischer drove to Greenland to select possible locations, after which they obtained everything necessary for the filming under extreme conditions.

For three months in the summer of 1956, the film was shot every day. However, the first footage could only be sent to Copenhagen a month after filming began. At least they got feedback from the development studio in Copenhagen that the material was technically in order, but they could only inspect it after their return from Greenland.

The film was mainly shot in Saqqaq , a location on Disko Bay , with locals in the supporting roles. The scenes on the inland ice were filmed at Torsukattak Fjord and the film crew's ship Pax is said to have been the first ship ever to sail it. The filming location for Frederiksminde, however, was Ilulissat . The Greenland mosquitoes affected the shooting. At least one scene had to be re-shot with the help of a rear projection in the studio in Copenhagen.

The film crew consisted of ten people, including Erik Balling's wife Christa, who was in charge of the make-up. The script wasn't ready when filming began, so Erik Balling would finish it in the evenings.

The film production cost approximately DKK 1 million, which was three times the cost of an average Danish feature film. The film company hoped that Greenland would be tax-free because it chose the then politically current topic, but instead received a 15 percent tax discount from Finance Minister Viggo Kampmann , brother of screenwriter Leck Fischer .

The film premiered on the anniversary of Nordisk Film, November 6, 1956, at the Palads Teater in Copenhagen , where it was shown until March 21, 1957.

In his biography of Erik Balling, Christian Monggaard describes Qivitoq as the first film in Balling's Nordic trilogy . The second is Tro, håb og trolddom (1960), shot on the Faroe Islands , and the third Pigen Gogo (1962), which was made in Iceland .

In 2011 the film was released on DVD in a digitally restored version. Part of the original soundtrack and the opening credits were no longer preserved. The former was replaced with a preserved cinema roll, while the titles were redrawn from the original copy based on the original. Furthermore, one was not sure whether the film was shown in the 1.66: 1 format ( widescreen format ) or in normal image . The widescreen format was chosen for the restoration. In addition, the colors of the film were corrected and stains removed.

reception

Awards

In 1957 it was the first Danish film to be nominated for an Oscar in the category Best Foreign Language Film . The film was also shown in the competition for the Palme d'Or in Cannes in 1957. There it won the “Prix du documentaire romanesque”.

Reviews

While the film was a huge hit with audiences, the reviews weren't entirely positive. Except, however, mostly the film recordings. Erik Balling later criticized the film, which was his only Oscar nomination.

Contemporary reviews

Svend Kragh Jacobsen, reviewer of Berlingske Tidende , described the film as "good" ("god film") , which would offer "truth and humanity" ("sandhed og menneskelighed") .

Harald Engberg of the policies was full of praise for Writers: "Leck Fischer task has solved mitaufzunehmen everything: Old houses and new housing developments, kayaks, the Eskimo rolls do, launches, the fish catch, old customs and special union superstition as well as fantastic natural phenomena , sweet Greenlandic children with their vicious dogs, the capable Poul Richhardt and the lovely Astrid Villaume , plus there are erotic nurses, physicians with weak character, coffee and dancing on the threshing floor, both the likeable Gunnar Lauring and indispensable prototypes of both sexes [...]. " ("Leak fisherman has to open up at the hele med: både gammle rønner og de nye boelseshuse, kayak cores, the can slå kolbøtter, and cutterne, the can catch fisk, gammel sæd and sær overtro and gønfantiske natural fænderbomenerkendl og fænderbomenerke , the good Poul Richhardt and the søde Astrid Villaume, dertil erotic sygeplejersker, karaktersvage læger, kaf femik og bal på tennet, including the hyggelige Gunnar Lauring foruden lige så uundværlige folketyper af begge køn [...]. ”) In the end, however, Engberg comes to the conclusion that the film lacks liveliness and“ human drama ” (“ alt for lidt levende film and menneskeligt drama ”) .

On the occasion of the film's premiere in Nuuk , Chr. Berthelsen wrote in the Atuagagdliutit that the film was good (“god film”) and was well received by both Greenlandic and Danish audiences (“har fået en fin modtagelse såvel af det grønlandske som af det danske audience ”) . Whereas the member of Grønlands Landsråd , Jørgen CF Olsen , stated in a letter to the editor to the same newspaper that the film “shows a completely wrong picture of the life and behavior of the Danes in Greenland” (“viser et helt forkert billede af danskernes liv og opførsel heroppe “) ; Neither are the Danes in Greenland little angels (“små engle”), nor are the Greenlanders so stupid as shown that they 'go qivitoq' with every little thing. “If that were the case, we would have all gone qivitoq.” (“Hvis det var sådann, så var vi 'gået qivitoq' all together.”) The plot of the film seems “foreign” (“virker Fremdmed på os”) .

Director's opinion

Erik Balling, the director, made negative comments about the film in a 1974 interview. Its enormous success is explained above all by its pictures. The story itself was neither serious enough nor funny enough, but something in between. He should have done more research. The cause would have been the lack of the daily entrance exam and the lack of time.

Later reviews

Christian Mongaard regarded the film as a “curiosity”, the individual parts of which are the “Danish melodrama” (“[d] et danske melodrama”) , the humorous insertions (“de humoristiske indslag”) and in between the “almost documentary, if apparently not extremely truthful, portrait of Greenland and the everyday life of the locals ” (“ det indimellem next documentariske - og åbenbart ikke voldsomt sandfærdige - portræt af Grønland og de indfødtes hverdag ”) did not form a satisfactory whole (“ føjer sig ikke sammen til ”) . According to Mongaard, the Oscar nomination was also due to the low level of competition, as the prize was awarded for the first time in this category and only about a dozen countries submitted entries. The academy certainly also liked the mixture of melodrama and exoticism that was popular at the time, which also came along in fantastic pictures.

The film critic Morten Piil particularly appreciated the work of the cameraman Poul Pedersen on the film . Its “brightly colored shots of the Arctic Ocean” (“farvelysende optagelser fra ishavet”) are the “most immediate trump card” (“mest unmiddelbar trumfkort”) of the film.

Kim Toft Hansen rated the film as thematically “ open to criticism” (“critical”) and as “time-bound” (“tidsbundet”) . Greenlandic culture is shown from a colonialist perspective, namely as “helpless” (“ubehjælpelig”) , which is why the Danes “have the burden of training and developing the colony” (“bærer byrden for at uddanne og videreudvikle kolonien”) . Stylistically, however, thanks to the work of Poul Pedersens, Qivitoq has “masterful moments” (“momentvist et mesterværk”) .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og movie , Copenhagen 2011, p 158. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798
  2. ↑ FilmHeft (PDF; 3.1 MB) to Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , 1956th
  3. ↑ a b Interview with Poul Pedersen April 17, 1997 on the DVD from 2011. Written in: Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 162 f. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798
  4. ↑ a b Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og movie , Copenhagen 2011, p 163. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798
  5. ↑ FilmHeft (PDF; 3.1 MB) to Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , 1956th
  6. ↑ Chr. Berthelsen: 'Kivítok , Atuagagdliutit , January 17, 1957, p. 7.
  7. ↑ a b c d Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 160. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  8. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 153. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  9. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og movie , Copenhagen 2011, p 164. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  10. ↑ a b Thomas Hauerslev: Scanning of Erik Balling's farvefilm "Qivitoq" from 1956 ( Memento of the original from March 10, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.biografmuseet.dk archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , March 8, 2010, at: biografmuseet.dk.
  11. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og movie , Copenhagen 2011, p 157. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  12. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 167. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  13. ^ Jacob Ludvigsen: Stort Oscar-tema i Ekko , February 7, 2011; at: ekkofilm.dk.
  14. ↑ Qivitoq ( memento of March 2, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) on festival-cannes.com.
  15. ↑ Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , in: Morten Piil (Ed.): Gyldendals filmguide. Danske film fra A til Z , 2nd, revised edition, Copenhagen 2000, pp. 457–458, p. 457. ISBN 87-00-47806-7 .
  16. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og movie , Copenhagen 2011, p 163 f. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  17. ↑ quoted from: Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 164. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  18. ↑ a b Quoted from: Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , in: Morten Piil (Ed.): Gyldendals filmguide. Danske film fra A til Z , 2nd, revised edition, Copenhagen 2000, pp. 457–458, p. 457. ISBN 87-00-47806-7 .
  19. ↑ Chr. Berthelsen: K'ivítoĸ , Atuagagdliutit , January 17, 1957, p. 7.
  20. ↑ Quoted from: Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , in: Morten Piil (Ed.): Gyldendals filmguide. Danske film fra A til Z , 2nd, revised edition, Copenhagen 2000, pp. 457–458, p. 458. ISBN 87-00-47806-7 .
  21. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 164 f. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  22. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 165. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  23. ↑ Christian Monggaard: Balling - Hans liv og film , Copenhagen 2011, p. 166. ISBN 978-87-7514-2798 .
  24. ↑ Qivitoq - Fjeldgængeren , in: Morten Piil: Gyldendals danske filmguide , Copenhagen 2008, p. 454. ISBN 978-87-02-06669-2 .
  25. ↑ Kim Toft Hansen: Qivitoq - Fjeldvandreren , January 29, 2011, on: kulturkapellet.dk.